Thursday is for the New Testament. My intent in these Thursday posts is to welcome you along on a walk through different parts of the New Testament. As I read books, my habit is to write a chapter-by-chapter summary. What you will find here is my summary. Some of the opinions noted in these posts are opposed to mine. Sometimes I will note that, but most often I will let the author speak.
Thielman, Frank. Ephesians. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2010.
“Introduction to Ephesians” pp. 1-30
Thielman begins, as is traditional, discussing the authorship of Ephesians. He initially points out the disputes about authorship from the late eighteenth century, then discusses pseudonymity. Forgery was treated seriously in antiquity (Thielman 2010, 4) so there is some doubt about the purpose of much pseudonymity. Thielman concludes that there are no good reasons to consider Ephesians as pseudonymous (Ibid., 5). He then continues from a literary perspective to consider Ephesians as a “difficult and, for Paul, an unusual text” (Ibid.). Thielman goes on to cite very long sentences, ambiguous statements, and redundancy which create confusion in the text. This is not unlike Colossians, which leads many to consider the two letters closely related. Thielman details this on pp. 7-11.
Thielman continues by discussing the recipients of the letter (Ibid., 11). With no specific mentions of anyone but Tychicus, it appears the letter is ready for wide circulation. He discusses at some length the interpretive challenges inherent in v. 1. After this, Thielman considers the date range, placing the letter in the two years’ Roman imprisonment from Acts 28, probably 60-62 (Ibid., 17).
The circumstances of the letter occupy Thielman from pp. 19-28. Though a particular problem is not apparent, Paul says he will pray for the people in a variety of specific ways (Ibid. 20). Thielman also discusses the pervasive nature of the emperor cult and the possible need to encourage steadfast faithfulness to God (Ibid. 22). The chapter closes with an overall outline, identifying the portions which will indicate chapters in the commentary.
Thielman, Frank. Ephesians. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2010.
“Introduction to Ephesians” pp. 1-30
Thielman begins, as is traditional, discussing the authorship of Ephesians. He initially points out the disputes about authorship from the late eighteenth century, then discusses pseudonymity. Forgery was treated seriously in antiquity (Thielman 2010, 4) so there is some doubt about the purpose of much pseudonymity. Thielman concludes that there are no good reasons to consider Ephesians as pseudonymous (Ibid., 5). He then continues from a literary perspective to consider Ephesians as a “difficult and, for Paul, an unusual text” (Ibid.). Thielman goes on to cite very long sentences, ambiguous statements, and redundancy which create confusion in the text. This is not unlike Colossians, which leads many to consider the two letters closely related. Thielman details this on pp. 7-11.
Thielman continues by discussing the recipients of the letter (Ibid., 11). With no specific mentions of anyone but Tychicus, it appears the letter is ready for wide circulation. He discusses at some length the interpretive challenges inherent in v. 1. After this, Thielman considers the date range, placing the letter in the two years’ Roman imprisonment from Acts 28, probably 60-62 (Ibid., 17).
The circumstances of the letter occupy Thielman from pp. 19-28. Though a particular problem is not apparent, Paul says he will pray for the people in a variety of specific ways (Ibid. 20). Thielman also discusses the pervasive nature of the emperor cult and the possible need to encourage steadfast faithfulness to God (Ibid. 22). The chapter closes with an overall outline, identifying the portions which will indicate chapters in the commentary.
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